Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Some lovely fall roses bloomed just for this occasion: today would have been my son, Ryan's, 23rd birthday. I am honoring and remembering him today.

On another note:

We are under contract on the house purchase. Please continue to keep your fingers (and everything else) crossed that the bank accepts our offer, as this is a short sale, and they have the final say.

Here are a couple of pictures taken the day of the inspection...

Living room with true divided-light windows and wood burning fireplace insert. The floors are oak. All original doors and trim are intact. The house was built in 1934 and was moved to its current location in the 1950's when the university in town expanded.

Back side of living room showing original french doors leading out to a screened porch. The huge back yard can just barely be seen through the doors.

Kitchen. Not sure about the red pendant lights or the cutesy curtains, but I love the layout, the butcher block island top, and the cabinet space.

More photos to come as the deal progresses. The house needs some system updates and fixes, such as a new boiler and cleaning up of some of the wiring. Structurally, it is quite sound.

Monday, October 15, 2012

Yesterday afternoon we got out for a short walk in a secluded area of the Shawnee National Forest close to where I live. This is the scene there this fall, with trees more beautiful than I have seen in years. Nature is my solace.

In regards to questions about why I am wanting to move (again), I will fill you in. Those of you who have been with me for awhile know that I have moved 3 times in the past 2 years. Two of those houses were rentals, and I have a deep need to set down roots in a place I own. This summer we moved into my sweetie's former law office, which is a building he owns. This home is quite lovely, but it lacks the one things that realtors constantly harp on-- location, location, location. An ideal location for a home and for a business are 2 very different things. The house sits on the main street running through town, and there is near-constant traffic noise. And since it was once an office, it has no back yard; there is, instead, a parking lot behind the house. The other annoyance is that the neighbor to the west is a carryout pizza restaurant, whose light blaze all night long. If it were possible to air lift this house to a piece of small acreage outside of town, I would find that to be the best of all worlds; alas, this is an impossibility. Sometimes it feels to me like apartment living, which is something that does not fit my needs for connecting with nature in my own backyard. My goal in moving here in the first place was to try to allow some time to pass in order to recoup some of the money we invested in renovating it and to wait for the real estate market to improve before selling. It was never meant to be a long-term arrangement.

My sweetie also longs for the open spaces and greenery of the tiny cottage we rented last year. We miss being able to hear the owls in the evenings, being awakened by birdsong, seeing deer in the yard, viewing stars without the visual noise of street lights. I deeply miss having a garden. And now that we have Sadie, we NEED a yard for her to romp in, and, as my mom says, "do dog stuff." We have found a house with a fabulous location, just outside of a nearby community. It is closer to work for both of us, closer to friends, and closer to good grocery stores and restaurants. There is space and privacy outside, and the inside is charming.

Thank you so much for the positive energy around this house. Nothing is finalized on paper yet, but things are heading in the right direction!

In honor of Halloween, I brought in a couple bits of orange, a color I have never used in my house before. Black, grey, and cream keep it from being overbearing.

My reading corner gets into the game, with iron and orange accents.

The buffet in the dining room boasts a collection of earthy accents and a spooky mirror, perfect for Halloween.

Pyewacket sits next to the coffee table centerpiece. She blends well with any decorating scheme!

Another view of the living room, bathed in natural light.

This fall has been particularly busy. We have traveled to Chicago to take Sadie to puppy boarding school, where she is going through an intensive training program. She comes home next week. We have also traveled to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where we discovered the bliss of soaking in the thermal baths there.

And we have also been doing some serious house-hunting. We made an offer on an adorable cottage that I have fallen in love with. Please keep your fingers crossed that the deal goes through.

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A passion for nature

Natural Decor is my take on cottage style decor, with a harmonious blending neutral backdrops, sprinkled with shades of calm, an abundance of indoor and outdoor greenery, and a melange of organic elements.

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Taughannock Falls, Upstate New York

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About Me

These pages contain musings on living and the concept of home. As a child, all I wanted to do was play house and decorate. This site indulges those deep passions. It is also where I explore other interestes such as nature, art, poetry, and photography, my tribute to living a creative life.